South
Orange Gas Station Temporarily Closed
and Its Owner Fined for Deceptive Sales
Practices

NEWARK
– A gas station owner in South Orange
has been assessed a $9,800 penalty and barred
from selling fuel for 15 days after he was
found guilty of selling regular grade gasoline
as premium grade, and other pricing violations.

State
Office of Weights and Measures (OWM) officers
uncovered the violations at the Delta Gas
Station, located at 451 Irvington Avenue,
during an unannounced inspection in October.
OWM officers found that the posted per-gallon
prices did not match the prices set on the
pumps. They also discovered regular-grade
gas being sold from premium-grade dispensers
at premium-grade prices.

“This
station owner robbed motorists, giving them
less than what they paid for,” said
Thomas R. Calcagni, Acting Director of the
State Division of Consumer Affairs. “Our
Weights and Measures officers continue to
conduct random inspections, as do county
and municipal officers, and we’re
sending a clear message to all gas station
owners – you will not profit by cheating
consumers.”

Station
owner Irfan Hassan and his company, Signature
Fuel, Inc., were issued 14 summonses. Hassan
pled guilty to all 14 violations in municipal
court during a hearing last month.

In
addition to the $9,800 penalty, Hassan is
barred from selling fuel on the following
days: November 26 – 30; December 27-31;
and January 27 – January 31, 2011.

This
is the second time that Hassan has been
caught similarly deceiving customers. Last
year, he was also cited for selling regular
grade gasoline as premium grade. At that
time, he was assessed a $6,000 civil penalty
and was barred from selling fuel for 10
days.

Acting
Director Calcagni credited Acting Supervisor
John McGuire for his work in the investigation.

Motorists
can report suspected violations to the State
Office of Weights and Measures by filling
out a complaint form located at www.nj.gov/oag/ca/complaint/ocp.pdf
or by calling the Office at 732-815-4840.